


The Many Ways (to Say I Love You)

by bukkunmoonsin (bukkunkun)



Series: The X-Men AU No One Asked For [12]
Category: Heneral Luna (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Mutants, Birthday Presents, F/M, Family Feels, Gen, MALIGAYANG KAPANGANAKAN ANDOY, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-30
Updated: 2015-11-30
Packaged: 2018-05-04 04:39:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5320775
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bukkunkun/pseuds/bukkunmoonsin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bonifacio was different.</p><p>Which is why, on the day of that wonderful man’s birth, Jacinto had to get him something <i>perfect</i>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Many Ways (to Say I Love You)

**Author's Note:**

> KAPANGANAKAN NG ATING MINAMAHAL NA SUPREMO!!!! ANDOY MAHAL KA NAMING LAHAT HUHUHU IKAW ANG UNANG PRESIDENTE SA AKING PUSO ///kicks miong aside
> 
> warning for super super super super fluff. grabe. w e w  
> [tumblr post here](http://bukkun-moonsin.tumblr.com/post/134266615508/the-many-ways-to-say-i-love-you).

It was strangely refreshing to have someone you could call your father again. His uncle was kind, and was nothing but supportive, but he was no replacement for what he had lost. It was like... he wasn’t _enough_ for what Jacinto was looking for.

Bonifacio was different.

Which is why, on the day of that wonderful man’s birth, Jacinto _had_ to get him something _perfect._

He shifted, uncomfortable in his seat (more like a _rock_ , really) as across him, Sacay was looking at him with an amused smirk on his lips.

“Well?” He very nearly demanded, careful not to sound like a brat losing his patience. He flushed to his ears when Sacay’s smirk widened just that bit wider, and had the man not been _Mapalad,_ Jacinto would start worrying if he was a telepath too.

(There was another telepath in _La Sol,_ by the name of Apolinario Mabini. Jacinto, suffice to say, didn’t like him very much.)

“My, my.” Sacay drawled, and sat back against the cool earth under the tree they were sitting under. “You’re looking infinitely younger these days.”

“That was not what I asked, _Ginoo._ ”

“A little tougher, boy. _Ginoo._ The two o’s are distinct from each other, and remove that ‘u’ from next to the ‘g’.”

Jacinto tried to frown, but he knew he was pouting. “Yes, _Ginoo.”_

“Ah, much better.” Sacay grinned, and if one were to ask Jacinto what he thought Sacay’s _Mapalad_ ability would be had he had one, it would be the ability of being insufferably unreadable.

Which, while Jacinto could very easily solve that problem with a peek into the man’s head, he was, one: too good for such underhanded tactics, and two: embarrassingly still unable to make it so that people didn’t know he was peeking into their heads.

(Mabini could do that, though. Sneak in without people knowing. Still, he was _never_ going to ask him how he did it. _Never_.)

The way Sacay smirked at him told him that he somehow knew what he was thinking, the bastard.

“So.” He took a deep breath, content to relax against the tree trunk. “A present for good old Andres, eh?” he peered across the clear field, where Bonifacio was seated next to his wife on a bamboo-thatched mat, poring over papers, and, much to Jacinto’s embarrassment, the _Kartilya_ he drafted a little while back. “Oh, that’s right. It’s his birthday next week.”

“As a good friend of his, it’s surprising you haven’t the faintest idea.” Jacinto drawled.

“Hush, my boy,” at that, Jacinto’s glare sharpened at him and he tutted at him patronizingly. “Come now, smile, smile. You’ll wrinkle early.”

Jacinto glowered at him. “Just answer my question.”

“Well, Andoy likes his books, I’ve got to say. _Noli_ made him cry.”

Jacinto resisted the urge to giggle. He’d heard that story from Ka Oryang, and he’d laughed about it with her until the man himself came to peek into their room, jokingly saying he was worried they’d been gossiping about him. He couldn’t be righter.

“Well, what am I supposed to get him?”

“Another book, perhaps. _The Explorer’s Guide to the Creatures of the Philippines – with Mapalad Included_.” Sacay gave him a huge grin, clearly amused at Jacinto’s disapproving glare. “Hey, if it upsets you so much, why don’t you just ask Ka Oryang? She can probably tell you what you should get—she’s his wife!”

Jacinto pouted, crossing his arms, when he heard Bonifacio’s voice in his head.

_Jacinto? Is Sacay bothering you in any way?_

Jacinto turned to look at the man, who was looking at him with concern, and he rolled his eyes and gestured at Sacay with a wry grin.

 _He’s being a roundabout man again, like always._ He replied, and Bonifacio laughed heartily. Ka Oryang cocked her head at her husband, but with a quick gesture at where Jacinto and Sacay sat, Ka Oryang almost immediately understood, and began to laugh as well.

Jacinto found himself smiling warmly, and this moment was, truly, beautiful.

It was ruined by Sacay’s smack on his arm, but he’ll let this one slide, this time.

* * *

“Emilio?” Ka Oryang’s voice was interspersed with giggles as she watched Jacinto shuffle behind crates, hiding from Bonifacio, who was all the way across the hut, in another room. “What are you _doing_? You look absolutely precious.” She cooed.

“I’m _hiding_ , Ka Oryang,” he hissed at her, and ducked behind where she was sitting to bury himself in a pile of fabrics she had set aside. She would usually be upset about anyone messing she sorted out herself, but this was Jacinto, a boy—barely a _man_ —who wormed his way into her heart, being her nearly literal son. Like Bonifacio, Jacinto held a huge spot in her heart, and it endeared her to see him act childishly, for once.

“Hmm, from who?” she asked, leaving her seat to sit beside Jacinto in the pile of cloths, and in the other room, they both jumped slightly to hear Bonifacio’s loud laughter.

“ _Him_.” Jacinto hissed, and she swears, if only he had cat ears…

“Him.” Ka Oryang repeated, and he sighed exasperatedly.

“ _Supremo_ , Ka Oryang. I…” Jacinto flushed, and he looked just like a child. “I want to know what I should get him for his birthday.”

She smiled gently at that, her heart melting at how he looked.

“Well, why don’t you look into his head to find an answer?” she asked, and Jacinto shook his head, his hair mussing up and she couldn’t resist ruffling it either. He pouted at her, but she chuckled.

“I don’t want that, Ka Oryang.” Ah, there it was, the twinkle in his eye, and Ka Oryang wanted to give this boy a hug. “The _Supremo_ is such a sublime person—I, I want it from the bottom of my heart,” he paused, and his smile softened, his cheeks flushing adorably. “Not the bottom of his mind.”

This telepath, Ka Oryang thought, was the cutest one in existence. Mabini could go sod off, for all she cared.

She shook her head fondly, and leant forward to smile at him.

“Emilio,” she softly said, “I’ve an idea.”

* * *

It was the morning of his birth, and Bonifacio awoke to the warmth of two bodies at either side of him. He opened his eyes, bleary and confused, and he felt a gentle prod at his mind. When his vision had cleared he realised Ka Oryang and Jacinto had fallen asleep next to him. He blinked, confused, and shock took over him when he saw Jacinto’s hands wrapped in bandages, and Ka Oryang’s hands smelling like lavender antiseptic.

He mildly panicked, only falling still when he felt Jacinto stir, and hug his arm tightly, mumbling as he felt threads of Jacinto’s dream slip into his head.

(It was about chasing chickens, and he and Ka Oryang were in it, alongside Jacinto, chasing chickens in a field of lemongrass.)

Wait, chickens and lemongrass?

He realised he had woken up to the smell of his favourite food.

“… _Nilitsong manok sa zaha._ ” A slow grin crossed his face, and he saw a card next to it, in Jacinto’s and Ka Oryang’s handwriting:

 _Happy birthday Andoy_ (in Jacinto’s handwriting, was _Supremo_ in tiny letters over Ka Oryang’s _Andoy_ ) _, we love you._

There was a postscript in Ka Oryang’s handwriting, and his heart swelled in affection.

 _P.S. Emilio cooked the whole thing for you, I supervised. I hope you don’t freak out over the cuts on his hands. The boy’s terrible with a knife_.

He smiled warmly, and chuckled to himself.

He’ll teach Jacinto how to use a bolo in the afternoon. For now…

He lay back down, kissing Ka Oryang and Jacinto’s foreheads, and fell back asleep.

_Kay ganda ng kaarawan niya ngayong taon._


End file.
